


You, Me, Them, Plus Seven?

by AliNear



Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016), The Umbrella Academy (TV)
Genre: F/M, Soccer Mom Steve Harrington, Steve didn't mean to, Steve saves children, but it's for a good cause
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-09
Updated: 2020-01-15
Packaged: 2020-10-13 01:58:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 4,726
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20574575
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AliNear/pseuds/AliNear
Summary: Steve 100% was not expecting this, hadn't planned it, but can't say he regrets it. Not when he was saving lives.So, if kidnapping seven, three year olds would save the world, then Steve was going to do it.Hello Father (Mother??) hood, I greet you with a smile... and confusion.He still swears it was an accident.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> iv'e had this idea for a while, it might be a series of one shot and the like but for right now i just needed it out there.

Steve leans against the wall, pinching his nose between his eyes before glancing back at the sidewalk, praying he had just had another concussion or PTSD attack and was imagining the entire thing. But alas he was not.

It was the summer of 1992 and at 26, he, Robin, Jonathon, and Nancy had decided to move to New York and rent a place together. It had been going pretty great, Steve had thought. Jonathon was getting pretty noticed for his photography, while Nancy was finally applying to get her masters, Robin had taken a position as manager of a book store before talking him into applying as a teachers aid and he was now successfully teaching ten year old’s about math while he took night classes for an actual degree in education.

The Party were in there Junior year of their respective colleges and came by whenever they felt like it. Joyce and Hopper had finally tied the knot a little more then two years ago. No, one had heard anything about the upside down. Everything was pretty good. Their lives, even El’s, was pretty normal.

A small hand reached up and grasped at his fingers, only wrapping around three, as a pair of brown eyes looked up at him adoringly. Shaking his head, Steve crouched down and patted the little girl’s head before beckoning the other’s forward.

“Seven was it?” he asked awkwardly, waiting for the girl’s nodded before continuing, “Okay, could you grab-“ he paused staring at the little boy closest to her for a second before remembering his ‘name’, “Five’s hand for me? And Five, uh grab Two’s?”

The children obediently clasped hand, staring up at him, even as Four excitedly grabbed onto Six and pulled him forward to wave their joined hands at Steve.

“Yes, good job.” He praised, making One shuffle forward and hold out his own hand, looking between Four and Steve’s face panicked.

“Yes, and Three?” she stepped forward, pressing one hand to One as she grabbed onto Steve’s other hand.

“Yes, good,” nodding along Steve shuffled forward, mindful not to take his usual strides while he had seven toddlers toddling after him.

“Come along.”

“When you called me at work and told me it was an emergency, I didn’t expect this.” Robin told him dryly, her eyes cast towards their tiny living room, where the seven were currently in all corners of the room with papers, pens, pencils, and crayons.

“I didn’t mean too?”

“You didn’t mean to kidnap seven children?” Nancy hissed.

Steve shrugged hopelessly for a second before he blurted out, “They’re like El, I couldn’t just leave them.”

Jonathon leaned over the kitchen table, mouth hanging open slightly as he mumbled, “What do you mean?”

Taking a deep breath and flinching slightly at the ‘name’ leaving his mouth, “One, can you show my friends your… special power?”

The blond stood up, tiny chest puffed out as he took a step forward and easily lifted the side of the couch- Five, Seven, and Six- squeaking from their seats on top of the couch.

Five flashed blue, appearing on the other side of the room- landing with one dirty shoe on top of Four’s picture, sending him into a crying fit. Six’s head turned up at the other boy’s cries and without prompt, two purple tentacles slithered out of his dress shirt and pushed him forward- feet leaving the ground before he dropped in front of Four, wrapping both arms and tentacles around the sobbing boy. Four’s cries softened as he snuggled the other.

“Oh.”

Nodding his head at his friends’ faces he added, “Also their names are numbers.”

“You don’t think it’s Brenner?” Jonathon asked, eyes flashing just thinking of the scientist.

“I don’t know, but I couldn’t take the chance.”

The other three nodded along before all of them faced the chaos that was their living room. One had put the couch down with a flushed face, while Seven took the chance to roll off of it and trot towards Two and Three- which had stopped drawling on the paper and was busy trying to explore the rest of the apartment- valiantly trying to open one of the bedroom doors. Five had taken Four’s picture and was flashing between the kitchen and living room, trying to wash the dirt off, even as he miss jumped and ended up on the floor instead of the counter. Four had stopped crying and was watching Five with large green eyes even as he held onto Six. Six was silent, his tentacles retreating, as he hummed around haa’ed around Four’s clinging form.

“Soooo… who wants to radio the party and who wants to call the Chief?”


	2. Chapter 2

Grace Hargreeves was not born but instead made from metal, wiring, and code. she had been built to watch over the seven young children under Reginald care- seven babies that still babbled and stumbled on short legs. They had stared at her, large childish eyes stared up in aw when she had rubbed their backs, sang lullabies, and cuddled them.

She had been booted up a week before and had been designed and made to take care of these children. Made to fix any injury, to handle any cries, and to protect them. That is what she was made to do, those were her protocols. Protect these children. The children come first- before her- before the house and any possessions in it- before Reginald.

So, as the week progressed, Grace watched. She stood with a fixed smile and blue glowing behind her eyes as she took in what was happening in the house. As the children were forced into unnatural silence, with tiny heads up and backs straight. Lessons for children much older being forced on them and horrible punishment if they were not perfect-not above average- not extraordinary.

She stood with her head back and eyes focused on the wall, her fingers twitched when she heard the cries of Four and Six from behind the large oak doors.

She had only seen in the room that morning, when she was dropping the boys off there per Reginald’s orders. The cold metal tables with no sheets and pillows of any comfort for the children. Metal tables with equipment and sharp objects for probing and scrapping and taking.

It was the second day when she had to bring Three and Seven into the cold sterile room, that she made her decision. It would be another day for her to act on it, and three more before she put it into action.

She tucked each child in, One though Seven, all with kissed foreheads and whispered stories until eyes shut. Grace put on her best smile and made her way towards Reginald’s office, her heels clicking on the hard wood floor.

Knocking gentle on the wood, she stood at attention waiting for him to look away from his notes.

“Yes?”

Trying not to show her artificial teeth, Grace smiled wildly as she walked into the office.

“Now come along children.” Grace called, holding onto One’s hand and having them chain up behind her.

She was brining them closer and closer to the large park that was a block and a half away from the house. The blue of her computer glowed lightly as she scanned the people close to her.

“Go on dears,” She cooed, letting go of One’s hand and patting him towards the running children in the park.

Seven stood behind her, tiny fist gripping onto her dress. Four stumbled before letting go of Five and grabbing at Six- running towards swings with excited chatter. One nervously shifted, glancing at Two and Three before they walked towards the jungle gym. Huffing, Five scowled before pulling Seven off her dress and towards the others.

Grace walked the permitted, watching. When noon hit the children came over for snacks, large smiles on their faces, dirt on their clothes, and giggles escaping through breathless breaths. She handed out sandwiches and carrots before setting them off again, waiting a beat for wandering eyes to stray away from her before she stood and made her way towards a discreet spot.

And she waited.

It took a half-hour before the children noticed she was gone, the seven of them grouping up to look around the park with panicked faces. They separated quickly, each taking a different part to look.

It was as she was watching their progress that she saw Four run head first into a young man’s jean clad legs, sending the small boy down to the concrete. The man reached down, his eyes soft as he whispered to her boy, picking him off the ground and dusting him off before his own brown eyes darting around the park. After a moment he stood up holding his hand to take Four’s as he walked along the parks’ edge with him.

As he walked, Six took notice and silently began to trail behind, before Two and Seven followed.

It was only when One joined that the man had looked back and realized one child had turned into seven, trailing dutifully behind him like they had been training. Another hour passed as he spoke to them.

Grace wondered if she should have asked for some type of enhanced hearing in her programming.

The man’s face pulled back into a grimace, his eyes sweeping across the park one more time before he gathered the children into a line and herded them out of the park.

Grace had lost her children.

Grace had been made to watch over them, love them, protect them.

The only way she knew how to do that was to remove them from the house.

Grace’s plan worked. The children were free.

Turning on her heel, Grace left her hiding place and began the walk towards the mansion. Smile rather jagged as she purged her files of the kind man’s face or the day in the park all together.

Grace was made to protect those children, so protect them she will, even if it meant her termination. Her hands flexed as the sensation of tiny hands played against her synthetic skin, the the giggling played over in her files. 

Her lips twitched into a soft smile as she hummed the rest of the way home.


	3. Chapter 3

He walked into the store with only a vague idea of what they needed for the trip back to Hawkins and, he amended, basic supplies for seven toddlers. He paused for a moment, eyeing the main walk way for a moment before deciding he would need a cart. With the cart and wallet in hand he began his journey. Meandering his way through the aisles and eyeing all the signs as he looked for the baby section. It was only on his second lap around the store that he found it.

He bypassed the high chairs and diapers and baby safe food, over the passed week the four of them had stocked up pretty good on the basics. But both he and Jonathon had agreed that they needed car seats if they were driving back to Hawkins. So that is how he ended up here.

Steve stared at the plastic, scanning the different types and models and prices. It all looked the same to him though. His white and black converse began to tap fast and faster against the tiled floor, a hand flying up so he could rub aggressively against his chin.

“Rughh,” he groaned, before leaning over to just start grabbing, mentally counting until he reached seven.

Shoving the bulky boxes onto the cart he tried to maneuver through the aisles with the limited sight he had. Flashing awkward smiles and head nods towards the people he passed. Placing a hand on top of one of the boxes he continued his way towards the front of the store, a bright stuffed toy at the very end of an aisle caught his attention making him stop. His eyes darted between the toys and his cart, before he sighed heavily and reached out.

The planned drive back towards Indiana went a little like this. Number Four tended to follow Nancy around, babbling happily to her and the space around her- they didn’t know what he saw but they agreed he probably saw something they couldn’t- so with that in mind Nancy and Jonathon was taking Four and because of this they also got the privilege of driving Six, as Six tended to fuss more when not side by side with Four. Nancy thought it had something to do with the fact Four’s body temperature ran so low and Six so high- a balancing act she had decided. Two followed after- they hadn’t really planned for Two to be in that Ford LTD but they turned their back while putting a car seat in and suddenly he was climbing in to sit on the other side of Four.

Robin shrugged and simply handed the other car seat to the couple before picking up Seven to put her into the purple car seat. Five teleporting a second after to Robin’s car, tugging at the straps of the seat before eyeing Robin buckling Seven in with focused eyes.

Steve had already strapped One and Three into his BMW and had taken to going in between the cars passing out the small toys he had grabbed for the children.

Four in particular seemed to adore stuffed animals and coloring, Six while also enjoyed coloring favored staring at picture books fingers splayed over the imaged or lightly tracing over letters with sparkling eyes. Two had the habit of throwing things with deadly accuracy, something Steve was affair would cause problems in the car, so he had gotten him a small children’s puzzle book that he lopped a string through the spiral binding before tying to his car seat. One was rather fascinated with planes, so he had grabbed him a handful of toy models to play with even as he handed Three some dolls. Five also got a puzzle book or rather books though his weren’t tied and Seven got coloring books.

“Remember, were stopping for the evening at West Alexander, we can get a motel there.”

“Nancy has the map so were just following you anyway, no reason to fuss.”

Huffing Steve shook his head tapping his walkie against his head before turning to get back into his own car. Adjusting the review mirror, he stared at the two toddlers for a moment before exhaling. “This is going to be fun.”

** Hour 1**

The first hour is relatively peaceful- relatively because for the most part half the children are still most asleep because of the early hour. The few awake are mostly quiet, happily munching on animal crackers and sipping at juice boxes. It was only relatively peaceful because of the fact that they were still in the city, inching slowly through the morning traffic through the streets.

Jonathon had slammed on his breaks twice already and Steve had almost run over a kid jaywalking. The minutes ticked by before the entire hour passed.

Adjusting her mirror, Robin glanced back at Five and Seven. Seven had taken the clothes she had laid out for Four, so instead of a soft red dress she was in navy shorts and green caterpillar t-shirt, it was ridiculously cartoonish next to Five’s own space t-shirt, the shirt he had picked out himself, and gray shorts. He was slumped over, head leaning against the glass as he stared at the passing city. Seven was rather silence besides him, shoving fistfuls of animal crackers into her mouth, making her cheeks puff up.

She couldn’t help the smile that curled her lips, knowing the other would not being having as easier of a time as she would.

**Hour 2**

The second hour passed relatively easy, finally out of the city and the children now all awake but each occupied with their toys. Four in Seven’s red flowered dress had roped Six and Two (Both in overalls thought blue and green undershirts respectively) into playing an elaborate game with his stuffies, roaring softly as they bumped them together. Robin couldn’t help but chuckle as Five happily babbled, showing the puzzles to Seven with large smiles. Three in her own purple dress had started singing with the radio after a half hour and had bullied One in his jeans, and blue and red shirt into singing soon after, both kicking their feet as they sang.

But as two was getting closer and closer to three, Steve had rapidly clicked at the walkie talkie so they could pull in at the rest stop.

“Sorry,” he laughed, grabbing the diaper bag, “Bathroom break!” lifting Three up letting the weight of the diaper show as he settled her on his hip before lifting One up, shifting awkwardly as he walked into the rest stops bathroom.

After a beat he came back out, “There’s no changing table.” He announced, handing the children to Robin.

Nancy and Robin disappeared into the bathroom with One, Three, Seven and Six as Jonathon and Steve waited outside. After a moment Steve put Four down, having him grab Jonathon’s pants.

“Steve-“ he called, looking panicked as he juggled Two and Five, looking down to watch Four jam his fingers in his mouth.

“Getting snacks~” He sang back heading towards the cafeteria area.

** Hour 3**

Four had started to sob wildly, crying about a lady in white, big fat tears streaking down chubby red cheeks. His breathes soon came in raging gasp as he screamed. Six, with his eyes wide reached over, tiny hand petting his arm and saying “There, there.” Two watched for a moment, dropping the book he had started to chew the corner of to copy Six, reaching out his own hand to pet Four, more slapping then anything as he mumbled out “Ewe-Ewe.”

Four fell asleep after he stopped crying. Cheeks still red and nose dribbling with snot.

**Hour Four**

As the others fell asleep in their respective cars. One and Seven stayed awake. One had taken one look at Three and had gone quiet, blinking at her before announcing to Steve, “She sleep.” He told him seriously before bringing his toy plane up and whispering engine noses. Seven was staring out the window, pointing out birds and anything else she saw, all rather seriously.

** Hour Five**

Jonathon and Nancy abruptly pulled over, making Robin and Steve curse.

“What the fuck?” Robin demanded, storming over to the couple.

“Sorry, sorry.” Jonathon ducked, “Two started to throw things, I swear the bear turned mid air and hit me in the face!”

“Well… yeah okay.” Steve said lamely, “What should we do?”

“Can we, I don’t know switch for a little bit?”

Shrugging Steve handed over Three and took Two back to his BMW.

**Hour Five... and a half**

Steve pulled them over this time, handing a struggling One to Robin with a grunt. rubbing at the rapidly forming bruise with a grimace.

“Sorry, they started hitting each other and this one…”

“Here,” she nodded, letting him take Five from her car.

**Hour Six**

They finally pulled off the highway. Heading into the city, Jonathon and Nancy went to stop at McDonald’s while Steve followed Robin to the motel, wrestling the cranky toddlers from their car seats. They screamed, running around the small motel room, through the open door the conjoined the two motel units. Steve’s knees hit the back of the bed and in a moment his back hit the mattress. Sighing heavily he side eyed Robin and announced.

“And we get to do it again tomorrow!”

“God, I rather have the Russians.” She joked, grumbling even as she reached down towards Six’s lifted hands, his fingers sprayed out as he hummed to be picked up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So when their leaving  
Steve's car- One and Three  
Robin's car-Five and Seven  
Jonathon and Robin- Two, Four, Six
> 
> After Hour Five  
Steve's car- One and Two  
Robin's car- Five and Seven  
Jonathon and Robin- Three, Four, Six
> 
> After Hour Five and a Half  
Steve's car- Two and Five  
Robin's car-One and Seven  
Jonathon and Robin- Three, Four, Six


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> kinda short, i know sorry about that

They are halfway to Indiana and still have another six and a half hours to go to get to Hawkins. The children are back in their respective seats fusing over the second day of travel. Four had started crying the second they strapped him in, face red as he waved his arms and screamed. Six had taken one look at his screaming brother and started cry as well, quietly though, fat tears rolling down his chubby cheeks as he whined low in his throat. Two had stared at them with large brown eyes, darting between them. They hadn’t even left the motel parking lot before Nancy was out of the car and picking up Four, shushing him as she looked at the others for help.

Its Five, in a flash of blue, leaving his car seat to fall onto the concrete, planting his tiny body in black shorts and white polo in front of Nancy and sobbing Four. His face is set in a glare as he looks around the parking lot, his cheeks puff out before he starts shouting. Two from his car seat and the open door follows suit after a moment.

“You leave Four alone!” Five stomps his foot, as Two stutters out another, “E-e-eave!” he chanted.

They stay like that, Steve staring from his car in bewilderment, as Robin meets Nancy’s confused gaze. It takes a minute before Three, one, and Seven join the chants, Six sniffling as he croaked out “Leave, brother ‘lone!”

Jonathon leaned against the hood of his car, watching the children shoot the empty space around them angry looks as Four screams turn into hiccupping sobs. Tilting his head thoughtfully, he went around to take Four from Nancy, bouncing him slightly.

“Hey, little man, hey,” his calm voice quieted the other children as they watched him with their brother, eyes wide and threatening if not on toddlers.

“Can you tell me what you see?” he asked pulling out a paper towel Steve had stuffed in his car before the drive, holding it up so Four could blow his nose.

Wiping his nose against Jonathon’s chest he pointed to the right of Nancy.

“Nice lady Barbie, red hair, she tells stories.” Nancy froze eyeing the right of her suspiciously even if she couldn’t see anything.

But Four’s moved, gesturing toward the motel, voice going into a whisper as he spoke.

“Big men, they have holes,” he sniffled, turning his head back to Jonathon’s chest, “They yell.” His left arm uncurls from his chest pointing back towards the road, “Mean lady follows, she’s mean, calles- calles me names.”

“Jon?” Steve asks, leaning farther out of his car window.

“Remember how Will had True Sight?” he mutters back, pulling Four closer.

“You think he has a version of it?” Robin but in, head tilted as she watched Jonathon rub the toddlers back.

But Nancy’s eyes had blown wide even as they glittered with tears, “Four,” she spoke gentle, stepping closer to Jonathon as she did so, “Barbie, does she have glasses and, and a blue jacket?”

Turning his head from Jonathon’s chest, Four peered at her, hands curling into the soft sweater under his hands as he nodded.

“Oh God, he can see the dead. Jonathon he can see the dead!” she cried, eyes locked on him, even as Four flinched and curled closer into himself.

“How’d you come to that?” Steve demanded, finally stepping out of his car, hands flying up to pull at his hair.

“Barb,” she sniffed, “He can see Barb.”

Something flashed across Steve face before he stalked forward, sweeping Four out of Jonathon’s arms easily.

“Hey buddy,” he whispered, cradling him close, “Did- did they stop yelling at you?”

“Big men went back inside,” he whispered into Steve’s ear, “Mean lady still here.”

“Okay, that’s okay,” turning he walked back towards his car, eyeing Robin and jerking his head.

She scrambled, unbuckling Seven easily as Steve sat Four down in Five’s place. She placed Seven down in Jonathan’s car as she reached in to grab Six, whipping his red cheeked face as she moved him out of the car.

Before Nancy could argue, Steve stonily told them they were already about an hour off schedule. Jonathon grabbed Five and buckled him up next to Two, before leading Nancy back to his car. Robin waited, leaning against Steve’s car as they pulled towards the parking lot exit, patting his arm she got into her car and followed.

Sighing, Steve climbed back into the driver’s seat, adjusting the mirror to look at the two red faced toddlers.

Shifting the gears, he followed the others out of the parking lot, muttering under his breath, with his heart beating wildly and the familiar tingle of anxious energy in his chest.

“Sorry, Barb, but Nance doesn’t know when to quit,” his shoulder slumped forward, “and he’s just a kid.”

He doesn’t expect a response or anything, half sure he was talking to himself, so he nearly jumped when four told him promptly.

“Barbie said she knows and it’s okay.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thing they know  
One-Strength  
Four-Seeing the Dead or a version of True Sight  
Five-Teleportation  
Six-Stomach Tentacles


	5. Chapter 5

Hopper parked his car behind the truck El and Will shared. For a moment he stared at the Harrington place, the pool dirty and dust in the windows, it looked unlived in-and really it had been for a few years. After the first time with a gate Steve was more likely to be over the Wheelers or Joyce house then his own, and the second year…. Well Hopper and Jane had made room for the abandoned teen.

Which made his message even stranger. Steve hadn’t been there for years, anytime he came to Hawkins he’d crash at Dustin’s or the Hopper-his parents hadn’t been back even longer but suddenly he’s asking them to clean up the house? The house everyone in the party and ‘unofficial’ party knew he hated?

came into the house nearly silently, eyeing the door that was hung open and at an angle. He could hear the Boy grumbling even as he could spot El using her powers to lift a couch as he vacuumed under it.

“Why are we doing this again?” Lucas mutter, as he whipped the back windows.

“Cause Steve asked us to.” Dustin answer, picking up the fallen pillows.

“Doesn’t mean we had to say yes.” He grumbled lowly, eyes trailing to watch Max whipping down the tables.

“Doesn’t mean I wanted to spend my break cleaning his house.” Mike shot back.

Hopped shook his head before sighing loudly to announce his presence “Was knocking the door off its hinges part of your cleaning?

The five heads in the living room shot up and stared at him with doe wide eyes.

“Noooooo,” Dustin answered back nervously.

Unimpressed, hopper stared as he accepted a hug from his daughter before the three boys stumbled out an answer.

“Well you see Dustin couldn’t open the door-“

Dustin grunted as he jiggled the door handle.

“Just open the door.”

“I’m trying to! The key’s stuck!” he scowled, jiggling the handle and twisting the key more, ignoring the murmur of the party behind him.

“Fucking,” Erica whispered, stepping forward to push Dustin aside.

“I say we just break a window.”

“We aren’t breaking Steve’s window.”

“I don’t know, might work better then the key he gave Dustin.”

“Can you shut up Mike?”

Erica jiggled the handle once, twice, sighed heavily and lifted a leg up and kicked.

“What the Fuck!” Dustin yelped, “Don’t break the door!”

“Well it’s open.”

And it was.

Hopper stared for a while longer wondering if he could still ground them even though the only one still at home was Erica. Deciding it was better not to deal with that he jerked his head towards his car.

“I brought a vacuum and some rags; I’ll get them out of the car.” He turned to do just that throwing out “They had a delay so they should be here by tomorrow evening.”

So, he carried the vacuum and rags in, stopping to help Will get the cobwebs by the stairs, slipping him some cash and the takeout menu to the pizza place he left. At the stop sign he sat and stared debating if he should take the left turn towards his wife or head into town, the picture of the door egging him on until he made the choice to go into town.

While he didn’t know what was going on with Steve, Hopper still took care of his kids and if at the moment it meant buying him a door, then he would buy a door.


End file.
